The word ‘secret’ on the blog featured picture is conveniently obscured by the text.. This works as a good analogy with explaining regulation 12:
If, within 12 months of an injury on duty, you are totally and permanently disabled so that you are unable to earn any money in any employment, you will be entitled to a disablement gratuity under the provisions of the Police (Injury Benefit) Regulations. • The gratuity is the lesser of (a) five times the annual rate of your pensionable pay on the last day of service or (b) four times your total remuneration during the 12 months ending with the last day of service together with your total pension contributions. • The gratuity is reduced by the amount of any other gratuity payable under the Police Pensions Regulations and takes account of damages or compensation recovered in respect of the disability.
Up to 5 times the last pensionable pay. Quite a substantial monetary figure.
This gratuity is provided under regulation 12 and is rarely known about. The permanently disability isn’t physical disability, it is the disability of earning capacity and therefore includes the mind as well as the body. It is the total inability to earn.
The scandal is that it is never given. People given a 100% band 4 are never told about it by the federation. Those that do find out about are often told they have passed the 12 months and therefore not eligible. Those that apply within the 12 months are told that their 100% disablement of earning capacity is not permanent and so aren’t eligible.
Do you see the paradox? An award of a lump sum gratuity is never given due the hurdles put in place – the police pension authority use a circular argument to deny its application and the federation neglects to inform its members of it and to fight for it on their behalf. There are hundreds of IOD award recipients retired on 100% band 4 awards that should have had the regulation 12 gratuity but were deliberately misled about their entitlement to it.
The permanence can not argued as that it is a defining criteria of an injury on duty award (under regulation 30) BEFORE the degree of disablement is calculated. If the degree of disablement is 100% then the IOD recipient has total disability of earning capacity. Therefore the gratuity should be given automatically – why should the onus be on a claimant to claim given they are suffering a debilitation that amounts to them being totally disabled from earning due to the injury they received in the execution of their duty.
Given that conjecture is prevented as there is a power to review under regulation 37 the decision of entitlement to the gratuity should be given in the here and now. There is no remit to speculate about an improvement – if the 100% remains for 12 months post retirement regulation 12 is applicable. If someone has been a band 4 for years, missed the 12 month window due to maladministration and has never been able to have any earning capacity then regulation 32 may be used to reconsider the entitlement to a regulation 12 gratuity.